Western aims to stop slide

Saturday

Oct 24, 2009 at 12:01 AMOct 24, 2009 at 5:49 AM

Streaks abound as WIU football team hits road to face winless Sycamores

Chris Vogt

The Western Illinois University football team couldn't be hungrier. After the Fighting Leathernecks watched the waning seconds wind down in last week's Homecoming heartbreaker, it seemed obvious.
"The reality is simple, we let one slip away. We've got such a great group of young men on the team, and they're very determined not to let another slip away," WIU interim head coach Mark Hendrickson said of Western's 17-16 defeat to Missouri State.
"The plan is that it won't be a tough rebound because of our players," Hendrickson added. "Regardless of who the opponent is, we've got to win a ball game and of course that goal is to win this weekend."
On today's slate for WIU are the Indiana State Sycamores, who sit at 0-7 overall, 0-4 Missouri Valley Football Conference this season, with kickoff set for 2:05 p.m. at Memorial Stadium. Western Illinois (1-5, 0-3) looks to capture its first MVFC victory and snap a five-game losing skid.
"The mood of our team is excellent. Last week, they were very focused and very determined to play with the best of their ability," Hendrickson said. "And we talked about going out and having a good start and playing hard – they did that. Though, did we go out and play smart? No, not on every snap, that's for sure."
Hendrickson said the key focus for the his Leathernecks is to eliminate unnecessary mistakes. Western committed 11 penalties that mounted into 124 yards against the Leathernecks a week ago.
"We committed too many silly penalties, that was obvious," Hendrickson said. "You can argue based on the scoreboard, and the scoreboard is what counts, we know that. You can make the observation, an accurate observation, that on most plays from the line of scrimmage we outplayed (Missouri State). Most plays we played better than they did on offense and defense. But our mistakes, unfortunately for us, determined the outcome of the game."
The Sycamores could cause some problems for the Leathernecks on the defensive end with the mobile attributes of wide receiver-turned-quarterback Ryan Roberts.
The sophomore scored two touchdowns and Indiana State compiled a season-high 354 yards of offense in the Sycamores' 38-21 loss to Illinois State last Saturday.
"He brings a dual dimension to their game," Hendrickson said of Roberts, who will start at quarterback for the fourth straight week. "You've got to keep him contained. You've got to make sure you have every defensive player in the proper gaps for when he drops back. When a quarterback has that ability, it's a concern for your defense, that's for sure."
Head coach Trent Miles is in his second year at Indiana State, which has endured its fair share of bumps throughout the season. The Sycamores average just 8.3 points a game, while giving up 36.6 points a game.
"They've improved each and every week," Hendrickson said of Indiana State. "They've done a great job of improving, and we're preparing for a challenge like we do every weekend."
On Western's end, the Leathernecks average 19.8 points a contest, yet have given up 31.2 points a contest.
"The effort, the attitude is excellent and it has remained that way this week, which I would anticipate coming from our group of young men," Hendrickson said. "But we've still got to eliminate the silly mistakes."
Continuing to churn the way for Western is senior tailback Dre Gibbs, who rushed for a hard-earned 162 yards on 39 carries against Missouri State.
"Dre is a tough, physical running back. He's very physical, and he does a good job of getting all of his yards that's for sure," Hendrickson said. "Hopefully we can improve on the run block and our pass protection as well. But there's no question, we've got to rely on Dre to carry the load right now."

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